


bullseye

by sleepzzz



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, F/M, Modern Use of the Force
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-28
Updated: 2018-08-27
Packaged: 2019-03-09 23:53:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13492467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleepzzz/pseuds/sleepzzz
Summary: Rey kick starts her college experience with excitement from...archery class? It’s there that she meets her future best-friend Finn and future...something Kylo Ren.But it seems like taking that class causes Rey’s weird dreams and hallucinations (which almost always revolve around a snowy forest) to become stronger than ever.Who knew that shooting arrows at a target could change someone’s life forever?





	1. snowflakes and spilled food

_Gym. Gym. Gym. It’s kriffing hot. Gym. Where is the gym?_ Rey pulled the corner of her off-white T-shirt towards the waterfall of sweat on her forehead. She messily wiped away the moisture, a gesture she was used to. She still managed to keep an eye on each squared, ochre brown building she walked past, making sure to avoid the hustle of other students on the sidewalk.

Even though it was already the third day of class, Rey still had a bit of trouble locating her classrooms; college campuses were much bigger than high school ones after all. And considering she went to some dilapidated school in the middle of nowhere—the godforsaken desert city known as Jakku to be exact—this was a much more shocking change of scenery for her compared to other students.

“Hey! Rey, right?” someone suddenly called to her, shaking Rey from her internal gym chant. She looked to her left. Walking towards her was someone she recognized from class. She couldn’t help but smile at his friendly demeanor.

“Yup! That’s me.” She offered a small wave. “I’m so sorry, but you are…?”

He extended his hand out, his leather jacket squeaking ever-so-slightly. “The name’s Finn. We’re in archery together, yeah?” Rey nodded, accepting his hand shake.

“How are you not completely melting in this heat?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at his thick jacket.

“Oh, this? I just like to keep it on at all times,” he answered, with a tone like he was telling an inside joke. “You trying to get to class?”

“Yes.” Rey sighed. “I just haven’t gotten used to this campus yet.”

Finn held up his hands. “No worries; I’m headed there too obviously. Follow me.”

As the two found their way to the gym’s equipment room—the class’ designated meeting location—Finn pointed out little landmarks around campus, helping Rey recognize and memorize the grounds better. Upon their arrival, the teacher handed them bows, and instructed them how to get to the range.

“Have you ever done archery before?” Rey asked as they trekked past the baseball field.

“Nope, never. Have you?” Finn replied while examining the bow in his hands.

“Same with me. I just thought it would be an interesting activity to try.”

“Well, now when both of us ultimately fail, we know why.” He chuckled, causing Rey to grin in response. For some odd reason, she felt at ease with him, as if they were long-lost friends reconnecting for the first time in forever.

When the two arrived at the range, a majority of other students were already setting up the field: rolling out the giant foam targets, handing out bunches of arrows, organizing scorecards. Shortly after, the teacher arrived as well, instructing everyone to find partners. Finn turned towards Rey.

“Partners?” he asked, a hopeful gleam in his eyes.

“Do I really have a choice?” she joked. “I don’t know anyone else here.”

“I guess we’re stuck together then.” He smiled. “I’ll go get our arrows; you set up the metal rod thing, okay?” Rey nodded in understanding.

She turned to her task at hand, grabbing the metal rod—the ground quiver—and jamming it into the ground until it could stand up under the weight of the bow. Using her forearm, she wiped the sweat off her face when she finished. She squinted up at the sun, her hands cupped above her brow bone, creating a makeshift visor.

As the end of August drew closer, Rey had hoped that meant the daily temperatures would start to drop. She had spent her childhood in Jakku where “cold” was only a description she read about in her biology textbooks discussing the Arctic tundra. _I should’ve picked a school further North…_

But she had picked a university in the small city of Takodana, tucked away in the midwestern state of Missouri, which offered a lot more greenery than her tumbleweed hometown in the middle of Arizona. That was the first thing she loved about this town—she never thought she’d be able to see a lush green forest in her life.

Lost in thought, Rey almost didn’t notice the snowflake that fluttered past her eyes. _Wait. Snowflake?!_ She blinked, scanning the air for it, but to no avail. She snapped her head up to look at the sky, searching for any gray clouds that could have been the source of the tiny flurry. The summer sun blazed on, stark white against the bright blue _cloudless_ sky. Rey sagged and looked down at her shoes. _Great, it’s the third day of uni and I’m already going crazy._

Then a breeze picked up, sweeping across the range, and suddenly Rey felt like all the hair on her body stood on end. She felt an energy—a presence—behind her, like someone was watching her. Swallowing the dry lump in her throat, she whipped around to scope out her surroundings. Her eyes skimmed past the other students, who were all chatting away or preparing their equipment; no one was paying her any attention. _Then who—_

She froze when her eyes reached the complete other end of the shooting line. Standing there was a tall, lanky figure, with dark hair and eyes to match. Said dark eyes locked with Rey’s. She slightly narrowed her own hazel eyes at him, while he stared blankly in return. The only motion on his face was a small parting of his lips, and maybe the tiniest quirk of the brow.

In any other situation, Rey would have felt uncomfortable, maybe even angry, but something about this was different. She couldn’t bring herself to turn away, or avert his gaze. There was the slightest twinge of recognition. But she knew that she had never met this person in her lifetime.

“Rey?” Finn interjected abruptly, sliding the arrows into the quiver. Rey blinked many times, as she slowly turned her head to face Finn.

“Uh, y-yes?” She couldn’t seem to form words quite right.

“Why were you having a stare-down with Kylo Ren?”

“Kylo...Ren?” Rey echoed. She had never heard that name before, but it easily rolled off her tongue.

“Yeah. He’s known around campus as some mean, super smart prodigy—you know the type,” Finn rambled in a low tone. He gingerly touched his shoulder. “Violent too.”

Rey glanced back over at Kylo, who had long since taken his gaze away from her, and instead was setting up his own station.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “ _He_ was the one who started staring at _me_.”

Her partner raised an eyebrow, but before he could respond, the teacher called out, “Bows up!”

Finn picked up the bow from the quiver and clumsily nocked an arrow. As he shakily attempted to ready his bow, Rey tried to give him pointers on his stance, straining to remember the information they learned the first two class periods. Finn cursed as all three of his arrows missed the target completely. Rey recorded triple zeroes on his scoresheet.

“You’ll get it. Just need practice,” she encouraged. “This is just the first day after all.”

“You’re right.” Finn nodded, seemingly relieved. As he jogged away to fetch his arrows, he muttered to himself, “First day, first day.” Upon his return, he handed the bow over to her.

“Here I go,” Rey said. Finn smiled.

“Good luck.” He looked at his paper. “I mean, you can’t do much worse than me.”

Rey shrugged. “Maybe...We shall see.”

She nocked an arrow on the bowstring and lifted the bow up, pulling the cable back to her chin—the anchor point. Her left eyelid fluttered shut as she steadily aimed her arrow towards the middle of the target. She took a breath in, felt a miniscule twist in her gut, and released the arrow on her exhale. Finn scoffed as it struck the innermost gold circle; she had hit a bullseye.

“Wow.” Finn whistled, his hands on his hips. His face lit up. “You’re a natural, Rey!”

“Could’ve been luck.” She laughed, surprised by her own skill.

“Well, you’ve got two more arrows. Let’s see!”

Rey nodded and set up her second arrow. _TWANG!_  The shot landed to the right of the first—bullseye number two.

“Oh yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!” Finn hyped.

“That’s two in a row!” Rey gushed excitedly alongside him. As she loaded her third and final arrow, she felt a familiar hair-rising sensation. She shook her head, trying to focus solely on aiming her last shot.

“He’s staring again,” Finn grumbled beside her. Rey swallowed, and let her arrow go. She sighed as it landed on the edge of the blue zone.

“Kriff,” she cursed. Her partner looked at her.

“Kriff?” he repeated with curiosity.

“A made-up curse word I came up with as a child,” she explained absentmindedly. As he perked up to ask about her past, she quickly suggested they go retrieve the arrows.

“Two golds and one blue,” he commented while recording her numbers on the scoresheet. “And you’re sure you’ve never done archery before?”

“I’m sure,” Rey grunted as she yanked the arrows out of the target. As she and Finn walked back to their quiver, she glanced over to the end of the line—Kylo Ren’s station. He had his eyes closed, with his brows furrowed, almost like he was having an unpleasant meditation session. Finn caught Rey rolling her eyes.

“What’s up?” he questioned, following her line of sight. He rolled his eyes as well upon seeing Kylo. “Yeah, he’s just a weirdo; just ignore him." He glanced at Rey's face. "Sorry, you didn’t want to be his friend or anything, right?”

She grit her teeth slightly. “...No, I didn’t,” she replied. Her gut twisted a bit. _Why…?_

“Good.” Finn raised the bow up. This time, Rey didn’t give him pointers, however. She was too busy observing Kylo. _Let’s see how_ you _like being watched._

Kylo nocked, moved into the proper stance, and aimed with precision. _Of course he’d act like a professional_ , Rey thought resentfully. She crossed her arms as his first arrow struck the bullseye. Then, she frowned when his second arrow hit the bullseye as well; he didn’t seem to be cracking under the pressure like her. As the third arrow soared through the air, she peeked at Kylo’s face. His eyes were closed.

“Wait a minute...,” she murmured. _THUMP!_ Her eyes snapped to see the target. Her jaw dropped. He had hit a third bullseye. The three of his arrows were perfectly bunched together in the center, all evenly spaced and equidistant from each another. She looked back at Kylo, expecting a smug smirk, or the beginnings of a brag session to the teacher. But all she saw was his face, emotionless, as if what had happened was expected.

“Rey, look!” Finn exclaimed, causing Rey to break her gaze. “I got two arrows into the target!” He hadn't noticed her staring at Kylo.

“Great job!” She laughed, quickly going to record his scores. “First one went over, right? Then the second was in the white, and the third in the black?” Finn nodded excitedly. “Good job! You’re getting closer and closer to the gold.”

“Only a matter of time before I hit it,” he enthused. “Now, I want to see _you_ hit all three bullseyes!” Rey only gave a small smile, thinking of Kylo and his triple bullseyes.

For the rest of the class, Rey only hit the red and blue circles, while Finn slowly crept into the blue zone. He had chalked up her earlier performance to beginner’s luck, but she knew the real reason: she was too distracted by her observations of Kylo Ren.

Getting triple bullseyes on the first day was a feat in itself, but Rey rationalized that Ren had obviously done archery before. However, she just couldn’t come to a logical conclusion about something else. How had he done it with his eyes closed?

* * *

“Can you really eat all that?” Finn inquired, eyeing Rey’s mountain of assorted foods stacked on her tray. The two had exchanged phone numbers after yesterday’s class, deciding to meet up in the morning for breakfast.

She set down her prized pile as she forked over her meal card to the cashier. “I’m hungry,” she stated, as if it were obvious.

Truth be told, she had always grown up with little to no food, and the government-provided lunches of powdered and plastic-like foods could only fill her up so much, being the only full meal she got every week day at school. The college cafeteria food was worthy of three Michelin stars compared to _that_.

“I am too, but you don’t see a Mount Everest of bagels on my plate,” Finn teased.

“That's your loss then.” She smiled at the cashier while taking her card back. “I’ll go grab us some seats.” Finn nodded, digging in his pockets for his own card.

Rey carefully maneuvered her way through tables and students trudging off to the start of the day, keeping her eyes on her tray—all her food dangerously sliding towards the edges. Unfortunately, her intense concentration on her meal meant she missed the yellow “CAUTION: WET FLOOR” sign to her right.

 _My food!_ was the only thought running through Rey’s panicked mind as she felt her foot slide on the slippery linoleum, causing her to lose her balance. Her body surged backwards, and she clamped her eyes shut, bracing for impact. But it never came. _What?_ She opened her eyes.

A hand had reached out and caught her by the elbow, with an arm outstretched in front of her food, protecting it from toppling over. A loud clatter, the sound of plastic hitting the ground hard, resounded to Rey’s left, causing her to quickly turn her head towards her savior.

Peering down with those familiar dark eyes was Kylo Ren. Rey gulped, and felt herself tense up; his grip on her arm, combined with his stare, sent chills rattling throughout her entire body.

She wasn’t sure if his gaze affected everyone else as much it affected her. It felt like he could see straight past all her barriers, down to the deepest part of her heart. And oddly enough, she had a feeling that she could do the same to him, if she really wanted to.

“Ahem,” Finn said aloud, deadpan, causing Rey to jolt out of her stupor. She broke eye contact with Kylo to glance at her friend, whose eyebrows were posed in a comical confusion as he looked on with his food tray in hand. Her eyes flickered around the cafeteria. A majority of the students were observing them, and were quietly murmuring to each other.

Rey straightened her posture, and Kylo’s grasp loosened, though she could feel his hand move to the small of her back, lingering, just in case she were to fall again. Even though he wasn’t physically touching her, she felt shivers again, radiating from her back this time.

"Ah, uhm, thank you,” she said, clutching the sides of her tray, and looking back at him.

A pause. “You’re welcome,” he responded, rather plainly, his arms moving back to his sides. His deep timbre made Rey’s mouth go dry. She avoided his eyes, choosing to look at the floor, where a blue lunch tray sat, in a puddle of spilled food. _It must be Kylo’s; he probably dropped it when catching me..._

Her eyes widened. “Oh, God! I am so sorry about your food!” She set her tray down at the nearest table and started to bend down to help clean everything up, but Kylo shook his head.

“It’s fine.” He plucked the tray off the floor, turning to walk towards the trash can. Guilt pulsed through Rey’s stomach, rising up to burn her throat.

“Wait!” she called after him, “I can pay for your food!”

Kylo stopped and turned back. He tilted his chin up. “No, you can’t,” he said, placing his messy tray on the stack above the trash. Rey swore she saw his eyes twinkle. She frowned as she watched him saunter away, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his dark pants.

“What is his problem?” she voiced aloud. She thought of what he said, and of her dangerously low bank account. She had used her breakfast meal swipe for the day as well.  _Well...I mean I guess he wasn’t wrong...but that was rude!_

“Did you just have a conversation with Kylo Ren?" Finn asked as he stepped beside her. Rey shrugged. "And you're not bawling your eyes out? Man, what happened between class yesterday and now?”

“What do you mean?” Rey pulled out the chair from the table where she had set her tray, collapsing down into the faux wood seat.

“Yesterday in class you two had that weird stare thing,” Finn elaborated, sitting down across from Rey. “And today he’s your knight in shining armor? I thought you said you didn’t want to be friends with him.”

Rey picked up a plastic knife and started spreading cream cheese on a bagel. “First of all, I just _tripped_ and he was the closest one to help.” Finn nodded as she waved the knife around, gesturing. “And second of all, nothing happened between yesterday and today. That was our second interaction _ever_ ; we haven’t even _introduced_ ourselves.” She leaned in, continuing in a low voice. “I’m sort of freaked out.”

“Well, you’re not the only one.” Finn took a bite out of his toast. “I have never seen him act so... _nice_.” He blanched at the notion that _Kylo_ and _nice_ could be in the same sentence.

“You consider that nice?”

“Well, yeah, compared to his normal behavior.”

“You keep talking about his usual ‘bad’ behavior, but all I’ve seen is him acting quite down-to-earth.”

Finn shrugged. “Maybe he's changed then,” he conceded curtly, his jaws clenched.

“Is something wrong?” Rey’s brows furrowed.

He pursed his lips. “It’s just—ahg, nevermind. I don’t want to talk about Kylo Ren anymore.”

“I don’t understand, you’re the one who keeps telling me about him—”

“Because I thought you didn’t like him either.”

Rey blinked. “I...I don’t know anything about him.”

“Look, you can do whatever you want with Ren, but let’s...let’s just not talk about him anymore. Please,” Finn almost mumbled, staring intently at his half-eaten meal.

“Okay,” Rey nearly whispered. “We won’t talk about him anymore. Ever.”

Her friend offered a half-hearted smile. “Thank you, Rey,” he said, relieved. _DING!_ Both of them glanced at the lit-up screen of Finn's phone; he peeked at the text, then stood up, pocketing his phone and picking up his plate.

“Class?” Rey asked.

Finn nodded. “I’ll see you in archery later then.” He waved.

Rey looked up at the clock hanging on the wall of the cafeteria; it read _8:50 AM_. She sighed. She wouldn’t have anything to do for a while, as her first class of the day was archery, which occured everyday from _11:45 AM_ to _12:15 PM_.

She thought of her other classes’ assignments: the chapters to read, notes to write, papers to type. _I’ll work on those before class I guess._ After finishing all her food, she got up, put her tray on top of Kylo’s from earlier, and started walking towards the library.

* * *

Rey sighed in frustration as she closed her textbook. She had been studying for the past hour in the library, and it had been pleasantly quiet, until it sounded like a chainsaw had gone off somewhere in the building. At first, it sounded like a distant low humming, but it quickly amplified into an obnoxious buzzing in her ears.

She packed her books away into her backpack, slinging it over her shoulder as she began to walk throughout the entire facility, in search for the source of the noise. After a few minutes, she concluded it wasn’t on the first floor, so she climbed the stairs up to the second level. When asking around, no one else seemed to hear the sound.

Rey bit the side of her cheek.  _First snowflakes, now chainsaws...This confirms it: I really am going crazy._

She stepped towards the last corner of the floor she hadn’t been to yet, where signs were plastered all over exclaiming, “College Writing Center: get your essays reviewed today!” No students were entering the area, and Rey assumed they were closed for now. As she turned away, however, the noise seemed to have quieted down. Raising an eyebrow, she stepped back towards the Center.

The sound grew slightly louder. She strided closer to it, the noise starting to reverberate in her ears and rattle her brain. She quickly walked past the threshold of the open door, sure that when she did, she would find the source, and finally be rid of it.

The noise was almost unbearable now. Rey had to stop walking, to squeeze her eyes shut and take a moment to rub her temples.  _It has to be close!_ She gingerly opened her eyes and finally took a look around the room. It was vacant, save for one person.

_You’ve got to be kidding me._

At the other end of the room, sitting at a table was Kylo Ren.

He hadn’t noticed her yet. He had headphones jammed into his large ears, and a grimace on his face as he stared at the open book in front of him. Rey hoped to slip out of the room before he spotted her. Unfortunately, he lifted his head up, meeting her eyes.

The sound increased.

_ZZZZZZZZZZZZ._

Rey’s face scrunched in pain, her head throbbing, and Kylo’s eye twitched. Coupled with his grimace, Rey could have sworn he was in pain as well. _He must be hearing this as well..._

Both of them opened their mouths to say something. But the sound amplified, leaving Rey to gasp instead, and Ren to close and clench his jaw.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop; Rey’s fingers instantly felt numb, as if she had spent hours digging in snow without gloves.

A snowflake blurred between her and Kylo.

_ZZZZZZZZZZZZ—_

The buzzing ceased.

The room returned to normal.

Rey let out a sigh of relief, rubbing her forehead; Kylo also visibly relaxed, his broad shoulders dropping.

“What...what was that?” Rey asked, flexing her fingers, despite the numbness already gone.

“I don’t…,” Kylo began to reply. His grip tightened on the book on the table. Then, he blinked and slightly shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“What do you mean? You obviously heard that _incessant_ noise as well.”

He tapped the white headphones in his ears. “You’re mistaken.”  _Really? How did I not notice that?_ Ren raised a brow at her.  _Maybe it really was just me...But..._

She recalled his grimace. He may have tried his best to mask it, but she had definitely seen a flash of discomfort. “But your face...you were in pain—”

“You must be imagining things.” He stood up. “Do you know where the infirmary is…?” His question trailed off, non-verbally asking for her name.

“Rey,” she supplied. There was a brief pause. His jaw moved, as if he were chewing on her name. She crossed her arms. “And I don’t need to go to the infirmary…” She tilted her head forward, also silently asking for his name—despite already knowing it. _Don’t want to seem like a creep..._

“Kylo,” he responded, his tone colder than before. “And if you don’t want to go the infirmary for _hallucinations_ , then that’s your health at risk.” Rey opened her mouth to retort, but Kylo crossed his arms, mimicking her body language. “Is that all you’re here for—an imaginary noise—or can I actually help you with something?” Again, he turned his nose up, like in the cafeteria, looking down at her.

Rey glared at him. “No, thank you.” She turned and walked swiftly out of the room, not bothering to see his reaction.

 _I definitely saw him react to the noise, the noise that no one else seemed to bloody notice._ She frowned.

_But why would he try to hide it?_

* * *

“How was your morning?” Finn asked, as Rey and him set up their archery station for the day. Rey was glad that his mood seemed back to normal now.

“It was fine. I went to the library to study,” she told him, purposefully omitting her run-in with Kylo.

“Sounds fun,” Finn said sarcastically. “My morning math class was so _boring_. I think the only thing that gets me through that class is Poe.”

“Poe?”

“A good friend of mine.” His eyes lit up. “You can meet him, if you want! We’re meeting up for dinner later, want to come with?”

“Sure, sounds great,” Rey accepted with a smile. As Finn talked about the details, the instructor walked in front of the class.

“Okay, ladies and gentlemen, find a new partner for the day! I’ll be doing this everyday, just so you know; it’s a good way to get to know each other!”

Rey and Finn turned towards each other.

“Well I guess this is goodbye for now,” he said.

She nodded. “I guess so. Good luck.” Someone was already tapping Finn on the shoulder, asking to be partners. “Hit a bullseye today, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. You hit three, okay?” He excitedly held up three fingers, before turning to his new partner. Rey wandered around, seeing who else needed a partner.

She found herself looking at Kylo’s usual spot, last of the line, the furthest away from others. All the other students, even in their haste to find new partners for the day, were mindful enough to skitter around Ren in fear; he would be alone for the day, just like the previous class, and probably many classes to come. But he didn’t seem to mind. He busied himself by fiddling with his arm guard and gloves.

Rey’s curiosity got the better of her. Her interactions with him started to replay in her mind. _I need answers, Kylo..._

Before she knew it, she felt her feet taking steps closer and closer towards the end of the line, until she was only a couple feet away. She didn’t even need to announce herself, as it seemed Kylo had somehow sensed her, and was turning around slowly, anticipating. She stopped in her tracks, eyes locking with his. He clenched his jaw, and she did the same.

Rey extended her hand towards Kylo. “Partners?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE NOTE: the noise in the library is supposed to sound like kylo's lightsaber ignited
> 
> also, an archery target’s colors (from the outermost rings to the innermost) go: white=1pt, black=3pt, blue=5pt, red=7pt, yellow/gold=9pt
> 
> this is my first reylo fanfic, and first star wars fanfic at that, ever so idk if i'm doing this right man lmao
> 
> and it's my first time using ao3 SO I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M DOING
> 
> please let me know what you think! and if you have any questions or anything please dont hesitate to ask! and please please please if you have tips/suggestions, tell me!
> 
> my tumblr: theshippingdock
> 
> thank you!


	2. arm guards and friendly dinners

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously… (“snowflakes and spilled food”)
> 
> _Before she knew it, she felt her feet taking steps closer and closer towards the end of the line, until she was only a couple feet away. She didn’t even need to announce herself, as it seemed Kylo had somehow sensed her, and was turning around slowly, anticipating. She stopped in her tracks, eyes locking with his. He clenched his jaw, and she did the same._  
>   
>  _Rey extended her hand towards Kylo. “Partners?”_  
> 

“Partners?” Rey asked. Her grip on her flimsy paper scorecard tightened, crinkling the edge. Kylo glanced at her other hand, the one extended towards him. His brows knit together, analyzing if she was joking or not.

“Are you sure?” he questioned bluntly.

“Yes, unless you already have a partner for the day.” She made a show of looking around at their classmates, all of which were already paired up and prepping their stations.

His eyes flickered from student to student, before settling on her. “Fair enough.” He stepped to the side, and gestured with his right hand at the bow.

Rey joined him at the quiver. “You don’t want to go first?”

“Be my guest.” One corner of his mouth was barely raised, the smallest hint of a smirk.

Rey resisted the urge to scoff. “Why, so you can watch me again?” Kylo stilled. She bit the side of her tongue. _I did_ not _mean to say that…_

Her partner then fished a pencil from his pocket. “I could say the same for you,” he countered offhandedly, writing down the date on his scoresheet. Rey felt her face flush. _Wait_ , _he_ saw _me watching him? But I thought..._

“Yesterday,” she started, “you had your eyes closed. How did you see me?”

His grip on his pencil faltered, and his face seemed to pale a few shades, if possible. Rey continued, “You shouldn’t have been able to see me, much less hit _three_ bullseyes.”

“Weren’t you hallucinating yesterday?” he said methodically, dodging her question. His eyes slowly climbed up to meet her intense interrogation-like gaze. He squinted slightly. “In the library—you refused to see a nurse.”

“I’m not talking about the  _library_.”

“No, you aren’t, but it seems like the heat got to you: you could have been seeing things all day.”

“The heat doesn’t bother me; I grew up in Jakku,” Rey snapped, indignant.

“I’m not talking about _Jakku_.” The small smirk was there on his face again. “Perhaps the heat doesn’t bother you, but delirium can be caused by a number of things—say, the stress of a new school year.” He tilted his head. “The imagination is a powerful thing.”

The brunette clenched her fist, muscles tensed to swing. “I’m not crazy.”

Kylo raised an eyebrow. “Really? You surely don’t seem sound of mind: you were hearing non-existent noises in the library, tripping around in the cafeteria—”

“Bows up!” the instructor called. Rey released her fist, and tossed her scorecard at her partner like a frisbee. He caught it and smoothed out the creases she had created.

She marched up to the quiver, and picking up the bow, she hissed, “Look away, _Ren_.”

“I never gave you my last name,” he noted, amusement seeping into his tone. The arrow that Rey was loading slipped off the cable, and she had to try again to reattach it. _He’s right, I shouldn’t have known that._

“Kriff off,” she mumbled, sure that he hadn’t heard it; she didn’t need him to ridicule her for made-up words as well. Unfortunately, it seemed like he _did_ hear her, and he cocked his head to the side in response.

Before giving him a chance to say anything, Rey speedily set up her arrow and fired. It landed in the red zone. She quickly set up her second arrow, limbs moving speedily, causing her arm guard to slide down her left arm in the process. As she released the shot, the bowstring catapulted forward, whacking Rey directly in the now exposed skin of her upper arm.

“Ah!” she gasped in pain, immediately turning the appendage over. She kept her arm extended out to examine the damage: the skin was blotched red, and was already feeling sore. _Definitely going to bruise…_

“You need to tighten your arm guard,” Kylo said, taking a step closer to Rey. Before she could say anything, he wrapped his large hands around her arm, gently sliding the guard back up, then pulled the strings to make sure it stayed in place.

Rey’s breath hitched, and she involuntarily shuddered at the sensation of his hands on her. She quickly shook her arm out of his grasp.

“Don’t...Don’t do that again,” she shakily warned. Her face felt warm.

Kylo tucked his hands into his pockets. “I won’t.” He looked away, his cheek flexing like he was biting down on it inside. “Sorry.”

Swallowing hard, Rey fired her last arrow. As Ren wrote down her numbers, she fetched her arrows, glad to be away from him for a bit.

The next few rounds passed in silence. No comments or quips towards each other. Rey didn’t know if she preferred this awkward silence, or actually talking—arguing with, rather—to Kylo. When it was his turn, Rey handed him the bow.

“Your turn, _Mr. Triple Bullseye_ ,” she said with more venom than intended. His head snapped up, surprised she was talking to him.

He took the weapon. “And you resent that—why?”

“Why are you in this class if you’ve already taken archery? You want to show off to a bunch of newbies?” She looked at his scoresheet, nearly all perfect scores.

“I’ve never taken archery before.” He nocked his arrow.

Rey froze. “You haven’t?”

“No.” Raising the bow, and pulling the string back to his anchor point, he shut one eye. _Not both._ Then, he fired without hesitation, and seemingly without aiming.

“...You’re lying.”

He loaded his second arrow. “And why do you say that? Is there no such thing as natural talent?” Rey scoffed. Kylo launched the shot, again with no thought, before continuing, “You seem to have it as well. Why don’t you question yourself and _your_ abilities?”

Rey considered his words, as he fired his last arrow. She unfolded his scoresheet, preparing her pencil. “Do I even need to bother letting you finish shooting before writing your score? You’re just going to get triple bullseyes every time,” she asked, choosing to ignore what he said.

“I didn’t get triple bullseyes.” He gestured towards the target, where his three arrows stuck out in the red zone.

“You did that on purpose.”

“Why would I do that?”

She scribbled his scores on the paper. “I don’t know—to throw me off?”

“Throw you off what exactly?”

“You’re doing some weird things, Ren, and I don’t know how or why.” She put her hands on her hips, and straightened her posture. “But I’m onto you.” He shrugged and walked away to gather the arrows.

Returning, he gave the bow to her. “Here, crazy Rey.”

She snatched it from him. “I’m completely sane,” she said through gritted teeth. _Maybe if I get some bullseyes, he’ll shut up._

Her first two arrows landed in the red zone. _Ahg, I have to hit the middle at least once!_ Rey shut her left eye, taking time to carefully adjust her aim. Ren tilted his head slightly, considering something.

“Close both eyes,” he suggested.

“Is that your _super secret_ archery technique?”

“Just try it.”

“Fine,” she conceded, and shut both eyes. _Finally getting some answers; now I’m going to be able to see how he did it._ “How does this work?”

“Breathe.”

“ _I am_.”

“Picture the arrow flying. Not because you released it from the string, but more like you pushed it.”

“How am I supposed to push it when both my hands are occupied right now?”

“Feel the air, the energy, surrounding it _and_  you. Will it to fire your arrow forward.”

“Uh, okay,” she said, feeling a bit silly. _He could just be messing with me…_ Nevertheless, she took a minute to try and sense what he was describing. She felt the wind rustle against her, the dense summer air enveloping her like a blanket. She imagined it wrapping around the arrow.

Kylo shifted behind her. “Push it into the bullseye.”

She felt the twist in her gut, like the first day of class.

 _WHOOSH!_ She opened her eyes, watching the arrow soar across the field. Her middle three fingers were still clutching the bowstring; she never released it. _THUMP!_ The arrow hit the center. Her eyes widened.

“How—,” she turned to Kylo. He had his hand raised slightly, fingers aimed towards her head. His eyes were wide, and Rey saw shock with a hint of fear.

“You will forget what you’ve seen,” he commanded. His tone sounded urgent.

“What are you—,” Rey started, taking a step back. Her words cut off as she felt her mind become muddled, the edges of her vision starting to darken. _What is happening?!_

Kylo stepped closer. “You will forget what you’ve seen,” he repeated, brows furrowed this time.

“I will forget what I’ve seen,” she echoed mechanically; her mouth had moved against her will. _What?! I didn’t say that!_

Her vision went completely black.

Then, nothing.

...

...

...

Rey blinked. She gazed straight ahead at the target, looking at her arrows: two in the red, and one in the gold. _When did I...?_

“Good job, you hit a bullseye.” She heard Kylo’s voice behind her. She turned, watching him as he recorded her scores.

“When...when did I hit it?” she asked in a small voice. She only remembered the frustration of the first two reds.

“Just now,” he said. His mouth twitched. “Do you not remember?” _Great, even more reason for him to think I’m crazy._

“No, no, of course I do,” she lied. “I’m just...shocked, that’s all.”

“Okay, everyone, class is nearly over. Time to pack everything up!” the teacher announced.

“Well, good job today,” Kylo said, handing her scorecard over, then walked away before she could muster a response. She just stared at his retreating figure.

She felt dazed. There was a sense of emptiness, like something was missing. _And I’m willing to bet Kylo is involved._

Finn walked up to Rey. “How’d you do?” he asked with a tight smile. _Ah, he definitely saw me pair up with Kylo._ She wondered if Finn had seen if Kylo had done anything odd without her notice. However, he wasn’t mentioning Ren, so she decided not to either.

“It was okay,” she replied. Quickly changing the subject, she asked, “So dinner tonight?”

He smiled again, lighter. “Yeah, and if you have any friends you want to bring along too, go ahead.” Rey nodded. Shortly after, they bid farewell and parted ways.

She thought of other friends, and could only think of her roommate. She pulled out her phone, and typed out a text.

**_Hey, Rose! Want to go out for dinner?_ **

* * *

Rey tapped her index finger against the plastic table repeatedly. She tried to time it to the music playing over the speakers, but the sheer amount of college students piled into the restaurant heavily overpowered any noise other than conversation.

Finn had told her to go to some cheap, American buffet down the road from the campus; it was a student favorite for its affordable prices in proportion to the quality, and amount, of food. She had expressed some worry over cost, to which Finn had winked and told her he’d cover her tab if needed.

 _I need a job…_ With the busy start of the semester, she hadn’t even thought of work. _I have to start thinking about it soon…_ She needed as much income as she could get: she didn’t want her adoptive mother—Maz—paying for everything, despite her reassurances that it was _okay_.

“Where is everyone?” Rey muttered, checking the time on her phone. _Finn said he’d be here five minutes ago._ She looked at the entrance, expectantly.

“Uh, h-hello,” someone said behind her. Rey twisted her head around to face him. A scrawny man stood before her, nervously twiddling with his hands. He looked around her age.

She raised an eyebrow. “Can I help you?”

He gulped. “Ah, uhm, have we met before?” She looked closer at his face, searching for anything familiar.

“No, I don’t think so,” she responded. She frowned. “Sorry?”

“Oh, n-no worries...Sorry to bother you.” He walked away, still fidgeting with his hands. Rey watched him rejoin his own table with a group of other guys, all laughing at his antics.

“Wow, Mitaka, you _actually_ talked to her!” She heard of his friends say. _Poor guy,_ she thought before turning back to the entrance. She grinned as she saw Finn approaching.

“Hey,” he greeted. Rey crossed her arms in mock-anger.

“Took you long enough,” she teased.

Finn slid into the booth opposite of her. “Sorry, sorry. I was talking to Poe; he’s going to be late.” He nodded at her. “What about you? Where’s your plus one you texted me about?”

“It’s just my roommate; I told her it’d be me and a classmate.”

“What about Poe?”

“Me, a classmate, and his _friend_. And, she should be here any moment.” As if on cue, she saw Rose saunter into the restaurant. The petite woman waved excitedly upon spotting Rey. She waved back, leaning in to tell Finn, “There she is now.”

“Hi, Rey!” Rose addressed as she neared the booth. When she was standing at the head of the table, Finn finally turned towards her.

“Oh my God,” he whispered.

“No way,” Rose murmured back, jaw dropping. “Finn?!”

He stood up and hugged her. “What are you doing here?”

“Uh, having dinner with Rey?”

Finn pulled back from the embrace. “ _You’re_ the roommate?”

“ _You’re_ the classmate?”

“You two know each other?” Rey asked with a smile.

“Know each other? We _dated_ for a while,” Rose answered, sitting down in the booth next to Rey.

Rey blinked. “Really?”

“Yup,” Finn pitched in with a sheepish smile. He sat back down as well. “It was a few years ago.”

“But, no hard feelings! We’re still great friends, as you can see.”

Finn held out a fist to Rose, who fistbumped in response. “Totally,” he said.

“It’s been too long! Sorry we haven’t been able to talk—I’ve been super busy.”

“Yeah, same here.”

“So who’s the friend?” she asked, looking at the empty space in the booth across.

“Poe,” Finn responded.

Rose smacked her forehead. “Of course! I should’ve guessed that.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You two are practically joined at the hip.”

“We are not!”

Rose stuck out her tongue. “Are too!” She leaned back into the booth. She looked back and forth at Finn and Rey. “Enough about flyboy—how did you two meet?”

“Archery class,” Rey said. “I was lost and he helped me.”

“Archery? Sounds fun! I _so_ should’ve taken it.”

Rey thought of Kylo briefly, then shook it off. “Yeah...what about you guys? How do you all know each other?”

“We all went to the same high school,” Finn answered. “In D’Qar.”

“And you all ended up here?”

Finn laughed. “We all knew we wanted to come here one day. First, Poe graduated, then me last year, and—“

“Now I’m finally here,” Rose interjected. “And speaking of Poe…”

“Rose?!” Another person came up to their table, pulling Rose into a hug. “It’s been forever!”

“I know, and I’m sorry!”

Poe took a step back, holding a hand up. “No worries, I completely understand.” He looked down at Rey. “You must be Finn’s archery buddy.”

Rey grinned. “I am.” She stuck out her hand. “Rey.”

He gave her a charming smile in response. “I know.” He shook her hand firmly. “Name’s Poe.”

“I know.” Rey couldn’t help but respond.

Poe laughed, then sat down next to Finn, bumping him in the shoulder. “Buddy,” he said in greeting.

“Poe Dameron,” Finn responded jokingly. Poe eyed Finn’s leather jacket.

“You’re still wearing that thing, even in this weather?”

“Yeah.” Finn puffed up his shoulders. “It’s a precious gift.”

“Look, I didn’t give it to you so you could die of heat stroke, no matter how good it looks on you.”

Finn gave a small, almost flustered, smile. “Okay, okay.” He took off the jacket.

“The mother hen accomplishes her job,” Rose joked, raising her brows towards Poe.

“Just looking out for you guys, like a _good friend_ ,” he retorted. “But enough about us; Rey, tell us more about yourself—I already know way too much about these two.” He pointed to Finn and Rose with his middle two fingers. They both rolled their eyes.

Rey nodded slowly, brainstorming what to say. She hated talking about her past. “There’s not much to me: I grew up in Jakku then came here,” she stated, her words sounding robotic and rehearsed.

“Awesome,” Poe said, his eyes studying her. “So, Jakku? Isn’t that one of the hottest cities in the country?”

“Unfortunately, yes. But I got used to it.”

“What’s there to do in Jakku?” Finn asked. He was leaning in a bit, his interest piqued at her past.

Rey couldn’t tell them the truth—the truth being she had to work almost everyday, even as a child, under her scumbag of a foster father _Unkar Plutt_. Just thinking about him left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Thankfully, as if picking up on her discomfort, Poe held out his hand towards Finn, gesturing _stop_. “Why don’t we get some food before we starve ourselves?”

“Yes, please!” Rose agreed, also seemingly helping Poe steer the conversation away from Jakku. Rey silently thanked them in her mind.

After raiding the buffet, everyone shared bits about their day—normal stories about crazy professors, overwhelming amounts of assignments, and insufferable classmates.

“Yeah, and then she got the _instructor_ to come over and critique me,” Finn said, recounting his experiences with his partner in archery today. He concluded, shaking his head, “So embarrassing.”

“Sounds like she was just trying to help,” Rose said. Poe nodded in agreement.

“Maybe. But I feel like everyone was watching me fail.” Finn turned towards Rey. “ _Was_ everyone watching me, or was it my imagination?”

Rey glanced down at her left arm, where her bruise from earlier was hidden under her sleeve. She recalled Kylo’s hands on her, and swallowed the dry lump in her throat. “Sorry, I wasn’t really paying attention in class.”

Finn’s grip on his glass of water tightened. “Too focused with your partner?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Rey answered sourly, hoping to move away from the subject. She didn’t like Finn’s tone, but she had promised not to talk about Kylo.

“Ouch, what just happened between you two?” Poe asked, concerned.

“She was partners with _Kylo Ren_ ,” Finn spat.

Rey frowned. “ _You_ said you didn’t want to talk about him anymore.”

“Wait, Kylo Ren as in…,” Poe started. His voice trailed off while making eye contact with Finn, initiating a silent exchange.

“Who’s Kylo Ren?” Rose asked in confusion.

“I know what I said. But I thought that meant you’d stay away from him as well.”

Rey crossed her arms. “How am I supposed to know your every thought? And I can take care of myself, _without_ you telling me what to do.”

Finn broke his gaze away from Poe, and looked Rey straight in the eye. “You should just _stay away_ from him from now on.”

“Why are you reacting like this? Why is Kylo Ren _so_ bad?” she blurted.

“Just...he’s dangerous, okay? Please, just listen—”

“Whoa, slow down you two,” Poe interjected. “I know you mean Finn, I really do. But I think it’s up to Rey to decide for herself.” He hesitantly placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I mean, have you even told her about what happened—”

“No, I haven’t,” Finn said quickly, standing up. He put some money on the table. “I have to go. I’ll talk to you guys later.” He shuffled out of the booth, turning back briefly. “...Sorry, Rey.” He exited the restaurant quickly.

“What...just happened?” Rose asked.

Poe sighed, then cursed under his breath. “Always running away,” he muttered. Rey just stared at the door Finn walked out of.

“He’ll come back around; he always does,” Rose comforted.

“Really? He doesn’t seem too eager to come back,” Rey said.

“He’s one of those people who need time and space to think,” her roommate told her. “But he’ll come back.”

“I’m sorry he was acting that way, Rey,” Poe apologized. “He’s just very touchy about Kylo Ren.”

“Why? I don’t understand.”

The upperclassman bit his lip. “It’s not my place to tell you. I’m sure he’ll explain soon. Like Rose said, he just needs time.”

Rey thought of how she had withheld information of her own. “Okay,” she said.

Rose glanced at the clock. “We should head back now. You look tired, Rey.”

The three of them paid for their meals, and helped Finn pay for his with the money he left behind on the table. At the entrance to the restaurant, Poe gave Rey a handshake.

“It was nice meeting you, Rey. Hopefully next time goes smoother,” he said.

“Next time? You want me to join you after all that?”

“Of course we want you to join us!” Rose enthused.

Rey smiled. “I don’t know if my wallet can handle going out a lot.”

“Are you short on cash?”

“Yes: stereotypical broke college student.”

Poe laughed. “Same here. You should look into on-campus employment—you know, like in the library or something. I can help you, if you want.” He ruffled Rose’s hair, until her fringe is sticking out at odd angles. “You too, buddy.” Rose laughed and shoved his hand away.

“I’ll keep that in mind...Thanks,” Rey said sincerely. They begin to part ways.

Rose hugged Poe. “It was good seeing you again, Poe.”

“You too, kid,” he responded. As Rose started walking away, he turned to Rey, and waved. “Goodnight, Rey.”

Rey waved back. “Goodnight, Poe.” She turned around, walking towards her roommate.

“Oh, and Rey?” Poe said from behind. Rey twisted her head over her shoulder to look at him.

“Yeah?”

“I can’t tell you to stay away.” He pursed his lips, before looking into her eyes. “But be careful around Kylo Ren.”

* * *

Humming to herself, Rey pulled on the heavy door to the library. She started walking towards the front desk, double-checking her email to make sure she was headed in the right direction.

It had been a few days since the fiasco between her and Finn. The two still hadn’t talked, despite seeing each other nearly everyday in archery. Rey was giving him the time and space he needed; she believed Rose when she had said Finn would “come back.”

In the meantime, Poe had helped her apply for jobs around campus. Out of all of them, the library staff had responded the quickest, as they were short on assistants, and needed all the help they could get. They had told her to come in on the weekend—today, specifically—for some training and debriefing.

There was no one manning the desk as Rey walked up. She eyed the metal call bell, and pressed it. _DING!_

A familiar skinny boy with slicked back dark hair walked out from the office situated behind the desk. His eyes widened upon seeing her. _The person from the restaurant?_

“Oh, hello there,” Rey greeted. “We met at the buffet the other day, didn’t we?”

He gulped and nervously clenched his hands in front of him. “Y-yeah.”

She smiled. “I never got your name.”

“Dopheld Mitaka. But everyone just calls me Mitaka.” He relaxed a bit once he seemed to realized she wasn’t going to hurt him.

“Ah, I see. I’m Rey.”

“You—you’re the new assistant?”

“Yes; will you be training me?”

“Ah, no...I don’t handle new recruits…” He stepped back from the counter. “Not good with people...which is why they are getting someone new to man the front desk, I suppose.”

Rey leaned on the desk. “So I’ll be working here?”

Mitaka nodded. “I’ll go get...the other employee. You can put your stuff in the drawer.” He stepped back into the office, and Rey went behind the desk. She sat in the raised office chair, placing her belongings in the drawer under the table. She spun around in her seat while waiting.

“T-this is our n-new co-worker: R-Rey.” She heard Mitaka’s jittery voice. She stopped spinning, turning to face him.

And standing next to him was Kylo Ren.

_Why is destiny so cruel to me?_

“I know who she is,” Kylo said, his eyes focused on her. Rey quickly stood up. _Honestly, I should just expect him everywhere I go now..._

“O-oh, y-you—you do?”

“We have a class together,” Rey said. The two hadn’t spoken since they had paired up in archery. She made it a point not to interact with him in the slightest—heeding her friends’ advice—which had been working out well...until now.

Rey smiled sympathetically at Mitaka; the poor boy seemed to be terrified of Kylo.

He gave an uneasy smile in return. “That’s g-good. No need for introductions.”

“Mitaka, you can leave. I have to show her around,” Kylo ordered, a hint of anger in his voice.

Their co-worker straightened suddenly. “Y-yes, sir.” He quickly scampered away. After he disappeared into the office, Kylo motioned for Rey to follow him, which she begrudgingly did so.

“You make him call you _sir_?” she asked.

Kylo scoffed. “I don’t _make_ him. He does it out of reflex—he’s afraid of me.”

Finn and Poe’s warnings rang out in her mind. “Is there a reason for that?”

“He just gets on my nerves sometimes.”

“And what? You yell at him?”

The tall man squinted at her. “I don’t _yell_. I speak to him _sternly_.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“I wouldn’t expect any different from you.” Rey wasn’t sure how to respond. Thankfully she didn’t need to, as Kylo started explaining the layout of the library and their modus operandi. He detailed each part of the building they passed by.

They finally reached a familiar room, the one from the other day where they had introduced themselves.

“This is the College Writing Center,” Kylo announced.

“I already knew that,” Rey huffed. He folded his arms across his broad chest, glancing down with a raised brow.

“No noises this time?”

“Oh my God.” She started stomping off. She swore she heard Kylo chuckle. “Great...this is going to be _so_ great,” she muttered sarcastically. She pursed her lips.

_But...at the very least...maybe I can find out why Kylo Ren is so “dangerous.”_

* * *

  _It was cold, colder than Rey had ever been. The ground crunched under her every step, her boots digging into the fresh snow._

_‘Those aren’t my boots,’ she thought while peering down. Curious, she looked at the rest of her attire._

_None of it was stuff she’d ever wear; it looked...out of this world: a white tunic, beige pants—all wrapped in a long, off-white piece of fabric. Cloth arm warmers covered her biceps to her wrists._

_She glanced around. She was completely surrounded by dark, dead trees. The forest seemed to stretch on for miles. Snow dusted everything._

_It was quiet. Eerily quiet._

_Rey took a hesitant step forward, then two. Eventually, she was running, desperate to escape. The further and further she went, the unsettling silence melted away, giving away to a sort of static in her ears. It sounded like a muffled voice trying to speak to her._

_She kept running, trying to find a way out. The voice became clearer and clearer. It sounded so familiar._

_Suddenly, a cloaked figure stepped out from behind a tree. Rey screamed. In their hand was something, like a sword, glowing red vividly._

_ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ._

_‘The same noise from the library!’_

_The figure stepped towards her. Rey fell backwards, hitting her head._

_She heard the voice clearly now._

“Don’t be afraid.”

* * *

Rey shot up in bed, her blankets falling away from her shivering body. She looked around. She was still in her dorm room. Her roommate was sound asleep in her bed.

She grabbed her bottle of water, draining the whole thing. As she shook off her dream, her body warmed up again. _It’s summer...not winter...no snow._

She always had odd dreams of faraway places, worlds that seemed to come from pure imagination, where nothing was grounded in reality—an escape from an abysmal childhood.

But this time was different. _It felt so real._

And the voice. The oh-so-familiar voice.

_He really is wherever I go now, isn’t he?_

Rey nearly laughed, realizing that, somehow, Kylo Ren had made his way into her dreams.


	3. falling statues and destiny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously…(“arm guards and friendly dinners”)  
>   
>  _She always had odd dreams of faraway places, worlds that seemed to come from pure imagination, where nothing was grounded in reality—an escape from an abysmal childhood. But this time was different. ‘It felt so real.’ And the voice. The oh-so-familiar voice._  
>   
>  _‘He really is wherever I go now, isn’t he?’ Rey nearly laughed, realizing that, somehow, Kylo Ren had made his way into her dreams._  
> 

 

“No sleep?” Rose asked, stowing her books away into her bag. She closed the backpack with a forceful _ZIP_.

Rey suppressed a yawn as she lethargically checked her phone from the bedside end table. “Is it that obvious?” she replied, pushing her blankets aside and sitting up.

“Usually you’re up early doing things here and there. Is something wrong?” Rey’s roommate leaned on her desk.

The brunette crossed into their bathroom, grabbing a comb, and started untangling her hair. “It was…” ‘ _Don’t be afraid’...in Kylo’s voice._ “I had a bad dream, that’s all.” Rose nodded in understanding, watching as Rey yanked her hair back into the first of her signature three-bun style. She tilted her head in curiosity.

“Your hair…”

“What about it?” Rey felt an oncoming sense of dread. Her hands started moving slower.

“It’s a very interesting style. Where’d you learn that from?”

Her throat went dry. “I...I uh…” She cleared her throat and sped up her hairstyling. “My mother.”

Rose frowned slightly, as if detecting that she had hit a sore spot of Rey’s. “Oh, okay...cool.” She sat down in her desk chair and pulled out her phone. Rey finished the rest of her morning routine in silence. _Is it always going to be like this whenever I talk about the past?_

Rey sighed. _I can’t...I can’t keep shutting everyone out._ She coughed. “What do you think it means if you hear someone’s voice in your dream?” she wondered aloud, sitting down on her bed. Rose looked up with a raised eyebrow, and put her device down.

“Depends—whose voice are you hearing?”

Rey wasn’t too sure how to classify Kylo. “...An acquaintance?”

“An _attractive_ acquaintance?”

“What?” Kylo’s face flashed through her mind. Is _he attractive?_ She considered for a moment, before shaking her head to clear her thoughts. _Why in the world am I thinking about this?_ “I’m just hearing a _voice_.”

“You didn’t answer the question,” Rose noted with a smirk. “It’s not Poe, is it?”

“No,” Rey denied quickly. Although the upperclassman was quite handsome, she wasn’t particularly drawn to him.

“I wouldn’t blame you, he _is_ one charming man.” Rose leaned back in her chair, eyes cast to the ceiling. “If only Finn could see that,” she added under her breath.

“What do you mean?”

Her roommate quickly looked back at Rey. “Huh? Oh, uh, forget what I said; I’m just rambling.” _Finn and Poe in the restaurant..._

“Finn...does he like Poe?”

Rose laughed. “I think Poe definitely likes Finn; I mean, you can see he gets all starry-eyed whenever they’re together. Finn, I think, is just...confused right now.”

“Was it like this in the past?”

“Kind of. When we were dating, I think...I could tell. I could see it before anyone else did. So I thought it was best if we split up.”

“And you...do you still—”

“Like him?” Rose finished with a smile. Rey nodded. “Always as a friend. But I think I was confused like him. Thankfully, I figured some things out about myself.” Rey’s roommate stood up and grabbed her bag from the floor. “I’m not one for boys...or girls for that matter.”

Rey straightened her posture. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry so much—”

Rose shook her head. “It’s no problem; don’t worry about it. I’m glad to share.” She started walking towards the door. “Tell me about dream boy later—only if you want to obviously.”

Rey nodded at her roommate. “Thanks, Rose. I’ll see you later?”

“See ya!” The door closed and Rey laid back down on her bed. She still had some time before her classes. _I could try to sleep a bit more…_ She thought of the possibility of dreaming of Kylo again, and shot up from the bed.

Her skin buzzed. _I need to get my mind off that._ She glanced at her phone, picked it up, and punched in a familiar number.

 _RING! RING! RING!_ It was by the third ring that Rey realized she hadn’t even thought of what to say.

“Rey?” Maz’s voice crackled to life on the other end.

“Yes, Maz, it’s me,” Rey said, relieved. It was soothing to hear her voice after being away for so long.

“Oh, dear child, how are you?”

“I’m fine, just trying to get used to everything. What about you? How’s work?”

“Rey, you and I both know you don’t want to hear about my boring job.” Rey grinned.

Throughout the years, Rey had always tried to figure out what Maz’s job consisted of exactly. However, the only response she ever received was that it’s some sort of government work, and that it is so uninteresting that Maz refuses to divulge more. When Rey was younger, she always joked that Maz was a secret spy agent; Maz would wink over the rims of her enormous glasses.

“Now, tell me, how is Takodana? Are you liking the new school?” Maz asked.

“It’s great here; the forests are so beautiful. Do you remember how green everything is?” Rey wondered. Another reason she had chosen to come to Takodana was because it was Maz’s hometown; Maz would always reminisce about the days she ran a famous pub by the lake side with a smile on her face. If Maz—Rey’s savior and guardian angel—loved the town, it had to be a decent town at the very least.

“Of course! I think the change of scenery was good for you,” Maz responded. Rey’s throat closed up involuntarily as she thought of Jakku.

“Uh, right, so...how are things...how are things back...home?”

Maz hummed in annoyance. “Don’t you think about here. You’re much better off in Takodana,” her adoptive mother’s stern yet comforting voice rang out. “Besides, a home isn’t where you come from—it’s wherever you feel safe and loved.”

Rey felt her heart warm. “...Thank you, Maz.”

“Always remember that.” Rey heard Maz shift around. “Speaking of love, have you found any potential suitors yet?”

“Maz! Why do you have to word it like that?” Rey sputtered. “Besides, what makes you think I’m in need of a relationship?”

“Oh, my dear little flower. You are a beautiful young woman; I would be very surprised if not a single person has tried their luck yet.”

Rey automatically thought of Finn and Kylo. She shook her head. “Maybe some have,” she admitted, “but that doesn’t mean _I’m_ interested.”

“I have a sense that is only partially true.” Rey sighed. Maz’s hunches were always correct.

“I...I’m not interested in _that_ sense. It’s... _this person_ has been appearing in my life everywhere, and it’s very unnerving.”

“Are you sure it isn’t a stalker?”

“I’m sure. It’s just...coincidental meetings...and in dreams,” she mumbled the last bit.

“In dreams you say?”

“Yes.” She added quickly, “But not like _that_. It’s only, like, a voice. What do you think that means?”

There was a pause as Maz thought of a response. When she finally spoke, her tone was serious and oddly grave. “I think dreams are telling of our lives and reflect our inner selves. And perhaps, that means you want to—need to—know this person more.”

“...Like fate? Destiny?”

“Yes—exactly like destiny.” Rey chewed on the fingernail of her thumb. _Is she saying that Kylo Ren...is my destiny?_

She heard some voices in the background of Maz’s end. Maz yelled something in her native language. “I am sorry, dear Rey. That is my cue to leave.”

“No, Maz, don’t worry. I was going to head out anyways.”

The voices sounded more agitated. “Take care, flower. I will visit as soon as I can.”

 _CLICK!_ The line disconnected. Rey sat there for a while, the phone warm in her hands, staring at the wall opposite of her.

“Kylo Ren is my destiny,” she whispered to herself.

The room seemed to grow colder, as something inside her fluttered.

* * *

Rey stifled a yawn as she walked onto the archery range. She had opted to study instead of sleeping—a decision she was slowly starting to regret.

She sluggishly drove the ground quiver into the dirt and placed her bow on the hooks. She glanced around the field, not truly knowing who she was searching for—until she couldn’t find him. _Kylo isn’t here today..._

As she was about to step away to grab her scoresheet, Rey saw Finn approaching out of her peripheral; she straightened her posture, and tried to keep a neutral expression.

He stepped next to her. “...Hey.”

“Hey.” She glanced at his face, but he kept his gaze forward, watching their classmates set up the range. She cleared her throat, looking forward as well, before asking, “What’s wrong?”

Finn stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets. “I’m sorry, Rey.”

She looked at him. “I’m sorry too, Finn. I—”

“No, no,” he cut her off, shaking his head. “You have nothing to be sorry for: I was... _am_ a jerk.

“I shouldn’t have gotten defensive,” Rey tried to counter.

“You did for good reason. I expected you to understand when _I_ haven’t even explained why I’m so... _sensitive_ about Kylo in the first place.” He finally turned to face her. “And I will soon—I promise.”

“You don’t have to, Finn. It’s okay.” _I know how hard it is to open up about the past..._

“I want to.” He cocked his head to the side slightly. “I feel like...like I can trust you. Even though we barely know each other.”

His words reminded Rey of her and Maz’s conversation earlier. “Like...destiny?”

“I guess you could call it that,” he replied, shrugging. “The little voice inside my head kept telling me to come back to you.”

“Really?” Rey’s voice nearly cracked. There was a flash of an image in her mind: her, as a child, screaming. _Come back!_

“Yeah.” He chuckled. “You probably think I’m crazy.”

“No,” she said sincerely. She managed a small smile. “Thank you...Thank you for coming back.”

She wanted to hug him. _Is that okay? Like he said, we barely know each other…But something about this seems so...familiar._

Finn smiled back at her. Then, their attention was drawn away from each other when the instructor started speaking. “Well, looks like we’ll be partners for the day; everyone else is already paired off.”

“Aren’t we supposed to have a new partner everyday?”

“Seems like we have to break the rules this time.”

Rey scoffed. “Scum,” she teased; the word had flown off the tip of her tongue before she could even think about it, somehow anticipating his response.

Finn picked up the bow from the quiver and effortlessly replied, “Rebel scum.”

* * *

Rey hummed to herself as she walked to her next class. _I’m glad everything is cleared up with Finn now._ He was right: it did feel as if the two of them _were_ connected in some way. _Though it’s different than my connection with Kylo…_ She grimaced at the notion of having a connection with that man.

As Rey stepped through the doorway to the lecture hall, someone tapped on her shoulder. Turning around, she was surprised to see Mitaka.

“Hello, Mitaka,” she greeted.

“Hello, Rey,” he returned. “You’re in this class too?”

“Yes, unless this class suddenly isn’t General Psychology anymore.”

“We must’ve missed each other the first few classes.”

Rey looked around the large classroom, watching as dozens of students filed in. “Well, there _are_ a lot of students.”

“I’m glad to see a familiar face,” he said sheepishly. “Do you mind if I sit next to you?”

“Go right ahead.” She sat down and began pulling out a notebook. “Don’t worry, I don’t bite—I’m not Kylo Ren,” she added with a snort.

Mitaka visibly tensed at the mention of his name, and Rey silently reprimanded herself for bringing Ren up in the first place. _Way to try and relate..._

“I’m sorry, Mitaka, I didn’t mean to say tha—”

“H-Have you known him long?” Mitaka interrupted, giving an uneasy—yet reassuring—smile.

“No, not long at all.”

He frowned. “Really? It seemed like you two have known each other a while.”

Rey let out a shaky laugh as Maz’s words— _destiny_ —rang out in her mind again. “No, I haven’t had the _pleasure_ of knowing Mr. Ren for long.” She smiled as Mitaka chuckled softly. “What about you? If it’s alright to ask…”

“I met him when I was hired by the library last year.” He gripped one edge of his laptop tightly. “I’ve been working with h-him ever since.”

“Is he...Is he _dangerous_ to work with?” she asked, remembering her friend’s warnings.

Mitaka’s eyes met Rey’s for a second, before quickly being casted down again. “He’s...I...Well, he hasn’t done anything to _me_ ,” he stammered.

Rey’s eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

He gulped, then opened his laptop and turned it on. “It’s two o’ clock. The lecture is starting.”

Sure enough, the professor started to address the class. Rey slowly opened her notebook, her mind sifting through the meaning behind Mitaka’s words.

 _Everyone seems to be afraid of Kylo Ren. He’s obviously done_ something _to cause that...and I’m willing to bet it has something to do with Finn._

* * *

“You weren’t in class today,” Rey said simply as she clocked in. Kylo glanced up for a split second, then returned to typing on his laptop.

“We have a large shipment of new books to organize,” he droned, ignoring her words. He picked up a cardboard box next to his chair. “You can start with these here.”

She walked over and picked it up. “You weren’t in class today,” she repeated. “Where do these go?” Kylo closed his laptop and stood up. Rey now had to crane her neck to look him in the eye.

“Is my attendance that much of a concern to you?” he finally relented, picking up another box from the other side of his chair. “We’ll start with the back shelves and work our way up to the front.” He stepped out from behind the desk and started sauntering towards the back of the library; Rey quickly followed him.

“I’m just curious. You don’t seem like the type to skip class.”

“Oh? We barely know each other, yet you make those assumptions.” He stopped, looking down at her. “But if you must know, I withdrew from the class.” He turned and walked into the aisle.

“You _withdrew_? But you were really good at it!”

“Which is why there is no point in continuing with that class; I don’t need any more instruction.” He set his box down. “Why the curiosity? I would say it sounds like someone missed me.”

Rey nearly dropped her box. She took a deep breath to regain her composure. “I’m a curious person.” She set her box next to his. “And like you said, we barely know each other—I wouldn’t miss you.”

Kylo scoffed and started shelving books. Rey started organizing her stack as well. The two worked in silence, moving from aisle to aisle.

 _CREAK_. Rey perked up.

“What was that?” she wondered aloud. Kylo carefully pushed a book back into its place on the shelf.

“Hearing noises again, are we?” He handed a book to Rey, one eyebrow raised in amusement.

She took it with a growl. “Still making fun of me for that? Doesn’t it get old? You don’t have any new, original insults?”

“You are _wanting_ me to make fun of you?” He held out his hands, glancing down at the books Rey was picking up. She shot a questioning look, until she realized the books belonged to the top shelf—the shelf she couldn’t reach. _He’s always one step ahead._

She shoved the books into his hands. “If you’re going to do it, try harder.”

“Okay.” He put one book on the upper shelf with a heavy _CLUNK_ . “Would you like me to make fun of your height?” _CLUNK_ . “How you eat enough for a small army?” _CLUNK_. “Or the fact that you drool in your sleep?” He gave her a side-eye.

Rey’s cheeks burned, either from anger or embarrassment—or both. _Wait a minute…_ She narrowed her eyes at him. “You’ve watched me _sleep_?”

“Sometimes you fall asleep at the desk.” he answered matter-of-factly, grabbing more books from the bin. The tips of his large ears were slightly flushed. “You cause a disturbance with your incessant snoring—oh, another thing to add to the list.”

“Rey?” She heard Mitaka call out from elsewhere in the library.

Relieved, she stepped out from the aisle. “Yes, Mitaka?”

Kylo scoffed behind her. “Why does he always call _you_?” he mumbled.

“Could you come see this?” Mitaka yelled. Rey swiftly started heading towards Mitaka’s voice. She heard Kylo’s strong, heavy footsteps behind her.

The two rounded the corner to see Mitaka standing below a sculpture hanging from the ceiling—one of the few decorations in the library. His head was craned upwards to look at it.

“It’s been creaking like crazy...Should we call someone? I think it might be hazardous,” he worried. He looked at Rey, and his eyes widened upon seeing Kylo behind her. “W-what do you g-guys think?”

Rey shot Kylo a smug look. “So the noise was real this time.”

“ _This_ time…,” he said.

She turned back towards Mitaka. “That’s a good idea, Mitaka. We can call someone—“

_CREAK._

The three of them looked up at once.

_SNAP._

One of the wires snapped. And the sculpture started plummeting down—right on Mitaka’s head.

Rey blinked. She made a split second decision to run towards Mitaka, not even thinking of _how_ to save him exactly. It didn’t matter though—she was moving too slow. _I’m not going to make it in time!_

But somehow, Kylo had leapt forward—faster than Rey—thrusting his hand up towards the falling sculpture. Right as it was about to hit the two men, the art piece hovered above them, then slowly descended and landed a few feet away.

Both Mitaka and Rey stared at Kylo with wide eyes. He was breathing heavily, his dark hair powdered with dust from the falling debris. _Like some sort of...super power?_

“S-sir?” Mitaka whispered. Kylo looked at him, then raised his hand at him.

“You...You will forget what you’ve seen,” Kylo commanded between breaths.

Mitaka stood rigidly. “I will forget what I’ve seen,” he repeated robotically.

_Wait, why does this seem...familiar?_

Mitaka’s eyes then rolled to the back of his head, and he collapsed on the ground.

“What...what did you do?” Rey asked in a low voice. Kylo’s eyes snapped to hers. He clenched his jaw and raised his hand, like with Mitaka.

“You will forget what you’ve seen.”

Something started happening to Rey’s mind—almost as if a fog had set in. But she shook her head, clearing it. _Something’s so familiar here. But why?_

“What are you trying to do to us?” she questioned, taking a step back. “How did you do that?”

Kylo growled taking a step towards Rey. “You. Will. _Forget_. What you’ve seen,” he said more aggressively, frustrated.

Rey felt something push against her consciousness. She slammed her eyes shut, concentrating on blocking it out. _Whatever he’s doing—it’s all mental, and I have to block it out._ It was like Kylo was trying to strike her with a sword, but her shield was blocking every hit. Everytime the two collided, her head throbbed.

Images flashed through her mind. They were of Kylo and her, the other day in archery. She watched as Kylo did the same exact thing he had done just now, but it had worked previously.

 _He’s done this before?_ Before she knew it, she had lashed back out to Kylo with her mind, ceasing his push. She opened her eyes.

Both her and Ren were sweating and panting.

“What...what the hell...was that?” Rey inquired between breaths. “You’ve done it before...you—what is this?”

Kylo grit his teeth as if he were deliberating something. Then he took a deep breath in and sighed. He straightened, and looked Rey in the eye.

“Rey...I have something to tell you.”


End file.
